This Week in Books

Not the best week; I seemed to stall quite a bit and not finish very many.


Underhill, Paco
Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping.
Fascinating look at the behind-the-scenes of the retail industry. I can't imagine doing the work his company does (hours of observing shoppers or store footage) but the conclusions are really intriguing with entertaining anecdotes. The book was written before the boom in online shopping, so I'd love to read an updated version that analyzes web retailers (that chapter was woefully outdated). I think I'm going to look for his other book, about the geography of shopping.



Ferguson, Alane
The Christopher Killer.
A young adult mystery, although it wasn't cataloged as one by my local library, and not a very good one. Gaping plot holes, inconsistent characterizations, and an obvious killer. I am not making any effort to find additional books by the author. Very disappointing. At least it was a quick read.






Farran, Susan
The Fireman’s Wife: A Memoir.
I've read a number of memoirs / autobiographies / biographies of firefighters, but this is the first one written by the spouse of the firefighter that I've read, and I really enjoyed the different perspective. The narrative flowed well, and my only real complaint was with the heavy-handed foreshadowing of her husband's serious accident while working. Still, for the most part I enjoyed it.

What is wrong with me??

Found a new blog today and have spent the last 3 hours reading through archives. I can't imagine why I get so little done from my to-do list and my house is a mess.

Oh, and dinner tonight? Microwave popcorn & homemade rocky road "fudge".* Good stuff.** Wonder why my stomach is a little upset. Surely it has nothing to do with the horrific food choices I've made this evening.

*I used pecans instead. Way better than walnuts.

** Might be really tasty made half with peanut butter instead of chocolate. May have to try that if there is a next time.

Guilty Pleasures

I'm going to confess a secret here. I'm addicted to Dancing with the Stars. I make my husband record it, and he always watches it with me. I think he's really looking forward to it ending (fairly) soon, but he does at least indulge me in my whim and watches it with me.

I can't decide who I want to win, which I think is just confirmation that I don't really have a favorite this season. I think Helio is my least favorite of the ones left (Mel B is my husband's least favorite) & we both like Jennie a lot. Marie is inconsistent for me - I *loved* her quickstep last week but other times she disappoints me. Cameron has grown on me, and I do think he entertains. We were both glad that Jane left this week, not because she's terrible or anything, but because we prefer the other five more. Can't wait to see next weeks.

Oh, and the trick to the show is RECORDING IT. Sheesh, what a tremendous amount of commercials/annoying Samantha interviews. So much nicer being able to fast forward. But don't fast forward through any DanceCenter spots - those are really funny!

One final suggestion, if you miss an episode, read all about it at my favorite recap site, Television Without Pity.

Thankful Tuesday

1. I haven't had to do my least-favorite task at work for a couple of weeks now, due to being out-of-town, an intern wanting the opportunity to try it, and other reasons. Whatever the reason, it delights me to no end.



2. Fall is here in all of it's cool-temperatured glory. I love love love fall & sweater weather. I love soup & can't fix it during the summer because my husband doesn't consider that soup-eating weather. So I'm always thrilled when the temperature drops enough that I'm able to start fixing soup again.



3. Recently got back from a trip to New York. It was my first time there, and it was FANTASTIC. More on that later...



4. I survived getting a flu shot. Another first for me. I feel like such a grown-up.
   

Menu Plan

What I think I'll make this week:

Monday: baked potatoes with leftover lentil vegetable chili & steamed broccoli.

Tuesday: spaghetti & salad.

Wednesday: chicken of some sort.

Thursday: black bean soup & corn bread.

Friday: pizza.

Saturday: sandwiches or whatever else we can scrounge up from the fridge/freezer/pantry.

Sunday: slow-cooker day. herbed beef with noodles (Light & Tasty December/January 2008 issue, page 26). Or at least this will be my jumping-off point since I'm sure to modify the recipe.

Memory Verse

Isaiah 26:3, New International Version

You will keep in perfect peace
him whose mind is steadfast,
because he trusts in you.

Where'd I Go?

I started this new blog with such good plans of posting semi-regularly (3 to 4 times a week) & that lasted for less than a month. But why is that? Well, in part because September involved family in town & visiting and then October involved me doing a lot of traveling - both for vacation & for work.

This is on top of work being more crazy right now because of a big huge project with a deadline of next week. And I really do mean deadline - this isn't something where it can possibly be pushed back or anything. I'm not even that involved with it like some are, but the effect has trickled down to me, as urgent things get handed off & such. I think it's just also caused a lot of mental stress being around so many people who are heavily involved with it who are really stressing out. I think things should improve after next week. Well, until the next deadline looms anyway. ;)

This Week in Books

Jane & Michael Stern's Roadfood Sandwiches: Recipes and Lore from Our Favorite Shops Coast to Coast

I loved this book, although it would have been even better if it had had pictures. Sadly, the only picture is the one on the cover. While I doubt I'd ever make any of the sandwiches described, I loved reading the stories behind them, and got some ideas for places to visit, both in my home town & while traveling.





Nancy Leigh DeMoss' Choosing Forgiveness: Your Journey to Freedom

This was a much quicker read than I'd expected, and I really appreciated how the author stressed that there were no quick fixes, or guarantees of what would happen, but still emphasized how essential it is for Christians to forgive (and ask for forgiveness). Although the book is back at the library, I'm still reflecting on things it brought to mind.







Molly O'Neill's Mostly True: A Memoir of Family, Food, and Baseball

A well-written & enjoyable memoir by a former columnist of the New York Times. Until reading the book, I hadn't realized that Molly is the older sister of former MLB player Paul O'Neill. I shared a number of the "Paulie" stories from the book with my baseball-loving husband who really appreciated him. The book really is good for anyone who likes family stories, food stories or baseball stories - it's full of all three.

NaBloPoMo

Since I've done such a terrible job with posting lately, I'm jumping on the National Blog Posting Month bandwagon as a motivation to get in the habit of blogging over here. We'll see how it works.

Memory Verse

Colossians 3:16, New International Version

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.